It Started With A Horse

13 Years Old

Three and a half years. It's been three and a half years since Colby has been at the rescue.

What a wonderful few years it's been.

From filly to mare, adorable to majestic. Gaining trust and strengthening a bond no person in the horse world could explain.

A bond that could not be broken.

No matter what.

They were almost inseparable.

Attached at the hip, if you will.

Whenever Maggie was out working, mucking stalls, feeding the animals, Colby would watch and follow her. Even when she'd bring Colby into the arena, she would follow. Listening to what she was being told to do, trotting along nicely, lazily cantering around, building muscle for maybe one day being a show horse.

A great one at that.

Before Mama was used to become a breeding mare, she was a fantastic barrel racer, pole bender and reiner.

A three time champion.

Until she got sold to the wrong breeders, not to been seen for another 5 years.

Colby was a bred champion. She was going to be used for the worst kind of racing.

It was either the track, ranching or worst.

The meat factory.

There was no way that Maggie was going to let that happen. They bought Mama and Colby, hoping to bring them to a better home than their last. Just as they hoped, Colby became a happy healthy horse.

She was beginning to fill out, gain strength, muscle and the ability to be ridden.

**

Her favourite thing to do, was to run like a wild horse, free as the wind. There was no stopping her the minute she'd been turned out to pasture.

It had taken three years to get her to the comfort level that she was at now.

A wild looking, free young mare, majestic beast.

Knowing she was free to run and run and run till her hearts content, she never wanted to stop. Well, until she had to stop and take a breath, but after that quick breath, she'd go right back to it.

She was taken on her first trail ride, after getting used to weight of a rider on her back, not long after her very first ride. Maggie went bare back and didn't put a bridle on, just a rope around her neck.

Not an ideal, 'first trail ride', but Maggie felt confident enough that Colby wouldn't try to take off.

Being as young as she is, and seeing, hearing and being around new things, she took everything in very well. Not once questioning the judgement of this somewhat small human, she trusted everything that Maggie did.

Every little rustle of trees or bush, Colby's head would perk up just the littlest bit, but once she realized the person on her back wasn't scared of it, she'd calm down and know that its okay. Letting her sniff, look or do whatever she wanted, except roll whenever there was a big opening of dirt, she realized just how much faith and trust Maggie had in her.

Maggie was training her in a way that no one else would have. She knew no one would take such a young horse on their first trail ride right out of the gate, but Maggie wanted to do things her way.

Show the young mare, it's okay to be free, it's okay that we're doing things this way. All negative behaviour is okay, but let's make sure we keep up doing positive behaviour. 

**

While out on the trail ride, Colby had started to act more strange than usual. Maggie had gotten a phone for the sole purpose that if anything happened on a trail ride, she'd be able to call her sisters or brothers, if absolutely needed.

Colby's ears were pricked forward, and her movements had started to slow, almost stopping at some points. She could sense something that her rider wasn't picking up, which was making her a little anxious, to say the least.

They came across an open dirt road, wide enough for two cars going both ways, Maggie had seen that it wasn't anything that could have harmed neither her or the horse, she calmed down, but was still on edge.

What was in the clearing, was a VERY pregnant mama mare. The mama looked like she could have been anywhere from 2 weeks to one month, from giving birth.

Maggie immediately called her sister telling her that she needed to get the truck and trailer and get there as quickly as possible, as there was a Mama mare just standing in the middle of the road. Ash, Maggie's brothers, Jackson and Jason, had gotten there at least 10-15 minutes later, to see that the young girl had hopped off the black mare and was calmly stroking the Bay mare neck.

Carefully, they had grabbed Colby, gently gave the young kid a rope halter, some treats and took Colby to the trailer until she could get the Mama to trust she wasn't going to be hurt.